In digital cameras and digital video cameras an optical image is converted into an electronic format by an image sensor, which is typically a photosensitive semiconductor element (Charge Coupled Device CCD or Complementary Metal oxide Semiconductor CMOS). This element is a plate known as a detector matrix which consists of small and regular photosensitive and colour-sensitive picture elements, i.e. pixels. The resolution of the matrix varies according to its physical size and fineness. An image sensor typically comprises hundreds of thousands of pixels, e.g. 640×480=307 200 pixels are used in VGA resolution (video graphics array). Utilization of advanced CMOS technology in the production of image sensors has enabled integration of digital and analogue electronics and the image sensor into the same semiconductor element. The size and weight of the camera module have been reduced, which has made it possible to integrate it into smaller and smaller electronic devices, such as mobile imaging phones.
The quality of an image produced by a camera module is usually proportioned to the display properties of the communication device, e.g. a mobile imaging phone. On a small screen the size of the picture elements that create an image, i.e. pixels, is smaller than in monitors used in offices, and thus at a certain resolution the sharpness of the image appears to be better to the human eye. The image quality on the screen of the communication device can be improved e.g. by providing the image with a greater contrast and more saturated colours. This makes the image seen on the screen of the communication device appear more natural to the viewer and improves its visibility.
When an image produced by a mobile imaging phone is transferred e.g. onto a computer screen which has better display properties than the mobile imaging phone, errors will appear in the image on the computer screen, such as discoloration or distortions. Due to this the image quality may have to be adjusted or improved. Furthermore, since the computing capacity of computers is nowadays considerably greater, a better image quality can be achieved e.g. using a computer program intended for image improvement. However, the user may find computer program of this kind difficult to use, and thus the user must have basic knowledge about the function and properties of image processing software to achieve the desired result in image improvement. Furthermore, the image improvement operation has to be performed separately on each image, which the user may find troublesome and time consuming.